Daniel Stocks has been sentenced to six months in prison after pleading guilty

It emerged Stocks had been trading in contravention of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

He claimed he didn't know the rules, but listings he wrote for eBay made "highly specific" references to the regulations.

Dawn Cartwright, of the NCA's Border Policing Command, said: "Stocks was a prolific illegal specimen trader who thought the rules on protected species were there for others to worry about.

"But those rules exist for good reason, and the NCA takes the criminal trade in protected species seriously. In partnership with Border Force we will make sure traders operating illegally are found and dealt with."

Grant Miller, Border Force senior officer, national CITES team, Heathrow airport, saidd: "Cases like this expose an illicit and often cruel trade, which can have a devastating impact on the survival of endangered species."

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